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Holy Toralum Empire
The Holy Toralum Empire is a vast empire in control of all of Redaros. The Holy Toralum Empire was officially established in 1400 when Denward the Blessed was crowned Emperor Denward I by Hexarch Dyrakios III. It shares a dual-sovereignty with the Hexarch, the Empire traditionally being the military arm of the Hexarchy. Originally encompassing only Durgandy, Ralais, Palany, and Kalidos, it eventually incorporated the rest of Redaros through conquest and offerings of vassalage. Today, the Holy Toralum Empire is one of the known world's leading military power, rivalling the Wu-Zao Empire. History Crown of Dorenburg The foundation of the Toralum Empire began with the union between the Kingdom of Dorenburg and the Kingdom of Ralais in 1267. The Bride's Claim was declared by Kaiser Konrad I of the Durgan Confederacy on King Arnoul II of Ralais to put his wife, Princess Mathilde, onto the Ralesian throne which will thus grant him authority over the Ralesian kingdom. In 1264, after his wedding, Konrad I issued a call to arms among his vassals, they all declined, justifying that the Durgan Kaiser's duty is to protect the Durgan Lords from foreign attacks, not to further the personal interests of the reigning Kaiser. This was quite common as the Durgan Lords did not want to upset the balance of power within the confederacy. Without their support, Konrad I marched off to war anyway. Konrad I's campaign in Ralais went smoothly, frightening the Durgan Lords. Fearing that Konrad I may win the war, they opted to elect a new Kaiser and depose Konrad I before he gains control of the whole Ralesian kingdom. They elected King Wolfram of Daxony as the new Kaiser and the Durgans declared war on Konrad I. The Bride's Claim ended with the death of Arnoul II at the hands of Konrad I in Oudac Valley , leaving Arnoul II's son to succeed as Roland IV. However, Roland was quickly captured and throne into prison by Konrad I, allowing him to swiftly raise a Ralesian host and march back to Dorenburg, where he would crush the Durgan rebels. With the Ralesians subjugated and the Durgans defeated and spent, Konrad I held supreme power of the Durgan Confederacy. No lord would elect someone but the Kaiser's chosen successor, his first son, keeping Konrad I's descendents in power while the customs of the Kingdom of Ralais kept passing the crown to the eldest son of the reigning King of Ralais. With the two sovereign states united under one ruler, the Crown of Dorenburg was formed. Holy Toralum Empire The capital of the Crown of Dorenburg was moved to Toralum in 1358 by Kaiser Gottfried I after he defeated all of his brothers and nephews in the First Dorenburger Succession War. The seventh and youngest son of Kaiser Roland I, Gottfried I was never destined to become a landowner. Along with most of his brothers, he travelled to Palany in search of land and glory. While his brothers were more interested in the land and glory, Gottfried was busy creating relationships with the Doges of Palany. When Roland I died, Gottfried was able to seize the throne of the Crown of Dorenburg with the support of the Doges. Gottfried I never married, but had many bastard children. Of the many sons, one was Denward the Blessed. Denward was mostly neglected by his father, but was groomed for an ecclesiastical career. Denward went on many pilgrimages to Pasharopolis, where he befriended Hexarch Dyrakios III and fell in love with his daughter Anna. During his pilgrimages, he would also become friends with the many Doges, who would only grant him an audience for being the son of Gottfried. Denward and Anna were married by Dyrakios III in 1392. During the wedding, an emissary from Toralum came with news that Gottfried had died, and his favored bastard son, Konrad, was killed the very same day, leaving the throne to be contested by his brothers, nephews, and sons. Dyrakios III immediately legitimized Denward, making him the one hereditary heir of Gottfried I. Like his father before him, Denward was able to gather the support of the Doges of Palany and win the war in 1394 and crowned Kaiser Denward I. In 1396, Ashatyans invaded the Zoltasid Empire and swiftly occupied the lands and began threatening Pasharopolis. Denward I marched down to Pasharopolis with an army to relieve his father-in-law, drove the Ashatyans out of Kalidos and claimed sovereignty over the Kaladines of the fallen Zoltasid Empire. For defending Redaros from foreign invaders and being the champion of Pashar, Denward I was crowned Emperor of the Hexarchy in 1400 by his father-in-law. The Winter War The Winter War began in 1526 when Pagan Vangars from the Far North mustered an army and invaded the Vangar Principalities. The Vangar Princes were quickly overran by the pagans, who breached the borders of the Holy Toralum Empire. Emperor Conroy V joined the war and drove the pagans back to their freezing wastelands and vassalized the Vangar Princes in 1530. Harlani Settlement The Tengri have always terrorized the eastern Redarosian countryside, by the raids have always been benign. However, in 1792 the raids became much more destructive, forcing Emperor Godfrey III to act. The Tengri could never be met in battle, they were too mobile. With the war becoming more and more frustrating, Godfrey III decided to allow some of the Tengri to settle in the Harlan Mountains in 1798 in return for defending the Empire from further raids. The now landed Tengri interbred with neighboring nobles, becoming the Harlani. Government Feudal Hierarchy The Holy Toralum Empire is a feudal monarchy in which authority is delegated to more localized governors. Officially, the Hexarch is at the top of the hierarchy, but his power over the Emperor is a matter of faith among the people and the Emperor himself. A pious Emperor will bend the knee to the Hexarch while a sceptical one will ignore him. The Hexarch can also excommunicate the Emperor, which may upset the Emperor's vassals. There are three types of vassals within the Emperor: *'Feudal' offices are hereditary, its titles traditionally passed onto blood relatives. Because feudal titles are hereditary, governors tend to be more focused in the interests of his own relatives. *'Republic' offices are elective, its titles are elected by a body of people. Because republics are elected by the people, these governments tend to be more focused in the interests of the people who elected the incumbent. *'Theocratic' offices are invested, its titles are appointed by the Hexarch. Because theocratic governors are invested by the Hexarch, they tend to be more focused in the interests of the Hexarch. The Imperial title itself is feudal government while the Hexarchy is a theocratic government. The Feudal Hierarchy system begins with the Emperor delegating power among his vassals. The Emperor himself cannot watch over the whole of the Empire, so more localized governors are in charge of certain regions of the Empire. Those vassals have vassals themselves who delegate their power to even more localized governors. The hierachy is broken up into five unit tiers: *'Imperial:' The highest tier that is occupied by the Emperor and the Hexarch. *'Royal:' This tier was named after the size of the Kingdom of Ralais, Royal tiers now form the borders of cultural spheres. Royal tiers are occupied by Viceroys. They are also known as realms. *'Ducal:' Duchies are made up of regions within the realms of the Empire. Duchies were originally created as strategic positions for a military leader to delegate his authority. *'Comital:' Even smaller than the duchies are counties and make up provinces within the duchies. *'Baronial:' The smallest tier, baronies are the most basic unit of land typically comprising a large city. Units are ruled by governors with titles based on the type of government, tier, and sex: Imperial Realms There are ten realms within the Empire each with its own Viceroy and degree of autonomy: Toralum Durgandy Ralais Palany Kalidos Beddica Shamad Vangar Harlan Kogenrad The Kogdenrad is the assembly of councillors of the Emperor. While the Emperor holds a lot of power, it is limited by the interests of his vassals as well as laws protecting the rights of the nobles. While the Emperor can make many decisions on a whim, doing so would upset his vassals, weakening feelings of loyalty. Therefore, seeking the advice of his vassals through the Kogenrad is the most preferred option. The Kogenrad is where laws are created, approved, vetoed etc. It is also where punishment is decided among traitorous vassals, rewards issued to loyal subjects, and where the declaration of war is discussed. There are two Houses of the Kogenrad: The House of Lords and the House of Clerics. Both Houses were designed to keep the balance of power between a sovereign and his subjects, as well as the power between the Emperor and the Hexarch. House of Lords The House of Lords comprise of the Emperor's appointed vassals. The Emperor has the ability to appoint his vassals as House members. When the Emperor appoints a council members, he has two contracts he can grant. One contract is a hereditary position in the council that is commonly tied to the vassal's title. When the vassal dies, his council position passes onto his successor. The other contract is a lifetime position in which the contract expires on death of the member. Usually the Emperor renews this contract on the member's successor, making it unofficially hereditary. The Emperor does not have the power to revoke the contracts by himself and requires approval of the House of Lords. House of Clerics While the House of Lords consists of the Emperor's appointed vassals, the House of Clerics consists of the Hexarchs appointed bishops. The House's members consists of specific bishops tied to a bishopric, the Hexarch is unable to offer membership to non-members, nor is he able to revoke membership to members. On the upside however, most if not all of the House members consists of bishops invested by the Hexarch himself. Due to the Emperor's immense power, the House of Clerics is commonly used by the Hexarch to invoke power onto the Emperor. Military The military might of the Holy Toralum Empire is the largest of the known world. However, despite boasting the largest armies, the Emperor cannot simply muster every single soldier of the Empire. He must seek approval of all of his vassals, whom directly control the soldiers of his demesne. Even if a declaration of war was approved, not every vassal will answer the call to arms. Even if the Emperor is able to muster every soldier of the Empire, he would not be able to provide supplies to all four corners of the Empire, and wouldn't even be able to breach the borders of the Redaros-Ashatyan jungle-line. The jungles of Ashatya are a natural deterrent to any invader. The Fongese on the other side of the jungles however, while more separated, are more well organized and centralized within each sovereign state. The Emperor would not even be able to provide decent logistics to Fongese should he conquer Ashatya, as opposed to the Fongese's mastery of organization. Many high-class knights, relatives of higher lords, attend the Sir Denroy's Knight Academy of Green Tower as squires. All of the Emperor's household knights have attended this highly prestigious institution.